The State of Pharma Digital Transformation

How digitally mature is pharma?

What progress has pharma made to embrace the digital age? Are digital strategies robust enough? Are appropriate capabilities and organisational structures in place? How culturally ready is the industry for the lightning-fast pace of technology?

Our professional researchers carried out a deep dive into the current state of pharma digital transformation to find out if and how digital opportunities are being exploited – or if stagnation has set in. We carried out in-depth interviews with 8 senior digital and data experts and discussed the key issues and challenges, including:

• What does digital maturity look like? Understand the current level of progress across the pharma sector, taking into account key performance areas such as automation, IT architecture, collaboration, leadership, governance and strategy.
• View from the top: Are pharma leaders bolstering or blocking digital transformation? What steps must be taken to get ahead? Is having a tech-savvy leader a 'make or break' factor?
• Appetite for risk: Pharma has traditionally been risk-adverse, so how well are companies adjusting to the high risk nature of digital transformation? And are barriers between pharma and third party technology collaborators coming down?
• Drowning in data: How well is pharma utilising the vast pools of data accumulating from early forays into the digital space? What should companies be doing to fully leverage this goldmine of information?
• Plan of attack: Where should the focus be for maximum reward in the digital space? Which digital advancements are making the most impact? How can the value of digital be effectively demonstrated? What is best practice?

Contact us about this report

What to expect from this report

More than just an assessment of the current state of play, this report crucially provides the key insights and recommendations needed to accelerate progress and come out ahead of the rest. Now you can download The State of Pharma Digital Transformation for the very latest views on progress, up-to-date examples, plus clear guidance from leading experts on how best to proceed.

How did we do it?

• We identified the 12 leading issues impacting digital transformation in pharma
• We explored these via an average of 18 targeted questions put to each expert
• Their responses provided 63 unique new insights
• Insights are supported by 120 directly quoted comments plus an additional 128 cited sources

Example insight included in The State of Pharma Digital Transformation

"The large pools of data being generated from digital tools is both an opportunity and a challenge. Mass data pools are providing pharma with opportunities they cannot yet fully reap due to poor data management processes. The volume of data will not slow down; but is likely to accelerate. Therefore, pharma must act quickly in terms of building core internal digital capabilities and moving beyond their traditional IT functions. They need a complete IT revamp that can cope with the digital world if they are to progress their transformation."

Example quote included in The State of Pharma Digital Transformation

"A lot of senior leaders are very interested in the cutting-edge technologies, like artificial intelligence and chatbots, and while that's truly interesting I think sometimes we should not forget the fundamentals. You need competencies and teams that understand the digital opportunities and can work to execute them before you begin to talk about some of the more high-level technology. If I were to give advice to senior executives, I would say to make sure you get the fundamentals in place before you jump on to the fancy digital solutions."
Kasper Jerlang, Head of Global Digital Marketing and Engagement at LEO Pharma

The expert panel for The State of Pharma Digital Transformation

• Ozgun Demir is the Director of Digital Strategy and Innovation at Novartis Oncology, US, and a Top 40 Healthcare Transformer who is passionate about improving patient outcomes.
• Hernando Giraldo joined Boehringer Ingelheim, US, in January 2018 as Regional Lead of Digital Development, bringing with him nearly 30 years' worth of IT experience
• Davidek Herron is the Head of Outbound Digital Channels, Europe & International Markets for Teva Pharmaceuticals, Netherlands, where his role is to drive digital transformation in Europe and International Markets.
• Kasper Jerlang is Head of Global Digital Marketing and Engagement at LEO Pharma, Copenhagen.
• Dr Georgia Mitsi is Senior Director, Head of Digital Healthcare Initiatives, at Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and is drawing on over 15 years' experience in the industry. Dr Mitsi is also the Founder and CEO of Apptomics.
• Danilo Pagano is the Head of Global Customer Engagement at Lundbeck, Denmark.
• Ronen Tamir is the Former Senior Vice President, Consumer Digital Solutions, at Teva Pharmaceuticals, and has nearly two decades of experience.
• Abhimanyu Verma is the Lead - Applied Technology Innovation, at Novartis, Switzerland.

Contact us about this report

Why buy now?

No one disputes the importance of a digital transformation, but there are still very different viewpoints and levels of understanding on what is needed to achieve success. And without any consensus on what a digitally mature pharma business might look like, it's impossible to embed the organisational and cultural changes needed to make real progress. Digital transformation is more than simply trying some new digital tools. Clearly, bold leadership is needed: this is not the time for a conservative approach to change.

Why FirstWord reports are different

• 100% new content: You won't find old research presented as new. Guaranteed.
• Opinions you need to hear: We only interview experts with current, relevant experience.
• Professional researchers: The knowledge, experience and contacts to get the answers you need.

Contact us about this report